Moment
by Michalyn
Summary: FicletA single moment is worth a thousand words and as a photographer, Treize wants to make sure he captures each one with Wufei.


I make no claim to any of the Gundam Wing characters. This story is written for my, and hopefully others' enjoyment and not for monetary profit. Thanks to Allison for the quick beta.

_Moment_  
by Michalyn  
Written for 30kisses themes, #1"look over here", #2, "letter" and #7, "superstar"

A frigid wind was blowing off the mountain as they made their way to the front of their log home; the trees were stark shapes in the growing darkness, their branches bowed with snow. Even the lake that Treize and Wufei loved to bathe in during the summer was encrusted with ice. Wufei shivered as he waited for Treize to open the door, his arms wrapped tightly around himself. Seeing the movement, Treize fished the keys quickly out of his pocket.  
"There we go," he said, opening the door. "Let me grab some blankets and get the furnace going."

Wufei merely made a shivery sound as he rested their bags near the door and headed to the kitchen. There, he promptly put on the kettle. Treize knew just how frozen his husband was when, after pouring some coffee for Treize, Wufei forewent his usual tea and grabbed some hot chocolate. Treize clucked sympathetically. Wufei enjoyed the winter, but dropping off last-minute Christmas presents at the Barton-Winner and Maxwell-Yuy homes in the cold, while battling the lingering effects of the flu, had taken its toll on him. By the time the furnace was humming away and Treize had returned with the blankets, Wufei was snuggled on the couch, the throw tossed hastily around his shoulders. He had started a fire, and the popping of the logs in the fireplace was a gentle counterpoint to the howling wind outside. The contrast heightened the sense of intimacy between them and Treize slid next to Wufei on the couch, careful not to disturb the mug Wufei was cradling between his palms. Treize spread the blanket around them.

"Still cold?"

Wufei shook his head, letting Treize pull him closer. When he had drained his cup, he sighed. "Slowly thawing."

"Good, good," Treize murmured, massaging Wufei's shoulders. "I can run a hot bath if you like?"

"Thanks. In a minute, though. I've finally gotten warm enough and I'd rather not move just yet."

Treize nodded, placing a kiss on the crown of Wufei's head. In the flickering light, the photographs above the mantel seemed to take on an extra life, and the black and white landscapes appeared as wild and forbidding as the mountains outside. Treize had shot all the pictures. He had always held an appreciation for the art and five years ago had started experimenting with different cameras and techniques. Soon, not only was his camera collection enviable, but Treize was pleased to discover he had a knack for photography. He had an instinctive understanding of light and its sensual relationship to color, and the framing of his subjects was distinct, often startling. At first, most of his photographs were color landscapes--glowing sunsets, the pale November sky--but it was not long before he abandoned color film for black and white. It favored his high-contrast style, and there was also something more subtle, more captivating about the medium to Treize's mind.

Now, telling which were his earlier pieces was easy and not merely because of color. Though he still did landscapes and still-lifes occasionally, Treize had found his one true muse in Wufei and most of his current photos were of him. The pictures made Treize smile because each usually required an incredible amount of persuasion, as Wufei, hating to be the center of attention, was always reluctant to be photographed. The camera, however, loved him. Perhaps it was because Treize's preferred medium itself was so subtle. Wufei was not expressive in the usual sense in that he was not given to extravagant displays of emotion, yet in strokes of black, white and muted gray, Treize was able to capture all the myriad changes in Wufei's moods that were perceptible only to him. Under Treize's loving gaze, the simplest gesture--the lowering of Wufei's eyelids, the curve of his back as he bent to pick an orange--were transformed into significance. This was another reason Wufei shied away from the photos. They showed him through Treize's eyes, and in exposing those sides of him usually kept veiled, Wufei complained to Treize that his photographs left him all too vulnerable.

Still, it was Treize's art and Wufei allowed it. Because of his own calligraphy, he understood the lure of the pure stroke against the paper. At least that was the official reason he gave; neither of them needed to acknowledge that it was really Wufei's way of saying he allowed it simply because Treize wanted it. And so they continued. Among their friends, it was a running joke that Wufei had become something of a superstar despite himself, for whenever Treize sold the odd piece or made a gift of another, the letters came in thanking Treize, all of which were followed by the inevitable, 'would the photographer mind them asking who the intense young man in the photo was?' Treize took particular delight in showing Wufei these notes and watching him color. He never told Wufei, but his goal was to capture each of Wufei's moods even as he was comforted by the fact that he would never achieve it. Neither of them was the same today as he was yesterday, just like the bond between them was continually transformed. It was a good lifelong goal for something that would span a lifetime and hopefully beyond, Treize reasoned. He was as eager to capture Wufei's unblemished smile today as the thought of the lines that would appear at the corners of Wufei's eyes in twenty years left him trembling with anticipation. It was no exaggeration to say he took his self-appointed mission with all the joy and seriousness that he took his marriage.

Treize left Wufei to prepare the bath as he had promised, and after good-naturedly serving as his husband's valet, he wandered into their bedroom to wait for Wufei to re-emerge. It was certainly as warm upstairs as it was in the living room, and Treize saw no reason to lounge about on the couch by himself when here he had the added benefit of being able to watch Wufei dress. Grinning, Treize spread out on the large bed and contemplated the ceiling. He was rather looking forward to that.

Treize allowed himself a guilty sigh as he sank deeper into the mattress. If there was one area of the house they'd spared no expense on, it was the bedroom. To make it even more sinfully decadent, a friend had gifted them with a large beaver-fur blanket. At first, both he and Wufei had balked at the spread, for neither of them were fond of the fur industry, but knowing their reservations, Otto assured them that it was used, recycled from unfashionable women's coats from the eighties. They still weren't quite comfortable with the whole thing, but after one night sleeping on the blanket, they were sold. Treize was just contemplating the evening ahead when the door to the adjoining bathroom opened and Wufei walked in. He rose to meet him.

"Ah, you're done, my love."

Wufei nodded and smiled. "Yes, thank you, that was just what I needed."

"Here, let me."

"Treize?"

"I've got everything in hand," Treize murmured, slipping Wufei's robe off his shoulders and patting the excess moisture from his hair with a towel. Wufei looked so lovely with his dark eyes shining and his round face turned sweetly up to Treize as the older man dried his hair that, overcome with tenderness, Treize scooped Wufei up in his arms and placed him on the bed. It had been his intention to make love with Wufei, but as Treize pulled back to caress Wufei's cheek, he saw for the first time the picture Wufei made against the burnished fur. Treize's heart thudded in his chest, seized as he was by sudden inspiration. He sprang from the bed, much to Wufei's disgruntlement.

"Where the hell are you going?" Wufei growled, clearly put-out.

"Don't move a muscle," Treize warned as he sprinted out of the room to get his camera. When Wufei saw what he returned with, his eyes widened.

"You can't be serious!" he hissed, already moving to roll off the bed. Treize swore, hurrying to his husband's side.

"Please, my darling, allow me this just once. You know I would never share these with anyone. They would be beautiful and just for us. Don't you trust me?" he coaxed when he saw the mulish set of Wufei's chin.

"This has nothing to do with that and you know it," Wufei accused. "If I didn't trust you, I would never have allowed any of the other pictures, but this..." Wufei's throat worked. "This is entirely something else. I won't do it." Wufei's cheeks were fiery, and even as he uttered this final edict he could not look at Treize. Treize smiled, having anticipated his reserve.

"Are you saying," he husked, murmuring to Wufei between kisses on his reluctant husband's cheek and throat, "that you trust me enough to undress you ... love you ... bathe you ... but not enough to let me show you just how enchanting I find you like this?" Treize's hand trailed down Wufei's stomach; his fingers lingered against the silky patch of Wufei's pubic hair and despite himself the younger man made a pleading sound. The stirring of his flesh was as unmistakable to Wufei as it was to Treize. Treize's eyes deliberately dropped to Wufei's burgeoning erection. "And you're even lovelier when you respond to my touch."

"Hurry up and take your damned pictures!" Wufei barked, laying back once more against the fur. For all his brusqueness, though, he was still blushing quite furiously.

Treize knew better than to waste his precious reprieve. Before the phantoms of Wufei's shyness could return, Treize quickly took up his camera. All the while, he spoke to his husband in a low, soothing voice, slowly teasing the tension away from Wufei's limbs with his soft words. Bit by bit, Wufei relaxed and it was then that Treize began shooting in earnest. For the first time in years, he almost bemoaned his preference for black and white film; Wufei's skin gleamed against the mahogany fur, warmed as it was by a hint of flush. Though he certainly had his choice of the latest digital cameras, whenever Treize photographed Wufei, he only used a 1957 Leica 1. Classic, elegant and unobtrusive, nothing seemed more fitting for his subject in that moment, as under the movement of the whisper-quiet shutter, Wufei's flush of embarrassment was transformed into one of arousal. When Treize asked him to raise one knee, Wufei hesitated at first, but he slowly lifted his leg, curling it back until his foot was planted firmly against the fur.

"Look over here, my Love," Treize instructed, his breath coming fast. He was a man at a feast, so overwhelmed by the sumptuousness before him that he had no clue where to start. He wanted to capture the sensuous line of Wufei's body ... the way his fingers subtly stroked the furs ... the tantalizing glimpse of the dark rose of Wufei's scrotum between his parted thighs ... the way the furs brushed against that delicate flesh as Treize longed to with his hands and mouth. So many, many options--such beauty before him that his finger trembled on the release.

Eventually, however, Treize settled on Wufei's face, for he would worship Wufei's body with his touch, but that expression there--the yearning, naked look on Wufei's face as he was held in the crucible of the expectation of pleasure--Treize wanted to preserve that forever, and like all of his pictures of his husband, it needed no color or gaudy lights. It was only a moment, but the one thing Treize had never told Wufei about his pictures was that not only did they portray Wufei as Treize saw him, but that every tender look, every subtle gesture he immortalized was without fail--in that moment--a reflection of the love Treize felt in himself.

End

1. Notes: Treize is referring to the Barnack Leica IIIg, still one of the most sought-after models by professional photographers. Leica are particularly known for their quiet shutters. Today, a Leica IIIg in pristine condition, like I imagine Treize has in this fic, would go easily for a few thousand dollars. To see a picture of the Leica, visit http/ I think they're quite beautiful.


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